System and method for providing user-selected information to a paging-capable device

ABSTRACT

A system and method for providing user-selected information to a paging-capable device. An enhanced paging system responsive to information sources and a selection device transmits information to a paging-capable device. The enhanced paging system comprises a storing means, a selecting means, a storage device, and a transmitter. Such a system can provide user-selected information to a paging-capable device, allowing the user to control what information will be sent and when the information will be sent. Intelligent-agent software can automatically search for and store information that would be of interest to the user and can alert the user that more detailed information is available. It can also send critical information to the user without user request.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This patent arises from a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser.No. 11/374,950, filed Mar. 14, 2006, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,760,072, whichis a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/930,623, filedAug. 30, 2004, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,046,120, which is a continuation ofU.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/409,915, filed Apr. 8, 2003, nowU.S. Pat No. 6,998,959, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 09/293,588, filed Apr. 16, 1999 now abandoned,which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/892,925,filed Jul. 15, 1997, now U.S. Pat. No. 5,936,547, each of which arehereby incorporated herein in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to telecommunication servicesusing a public telephone system and more specifically to enhancedservices for a paging-capable device.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Paging-capable devices are used to provide a user with a wide range ofinformation. As used herein, a “paging-capable device” refers to adevice that can receive information which is broadcast from a pagingsystem. “Paging-capable devices” include, but are not limited to, pagersand portable computing devices (such as personal data assistants,calculators, electronic notebooks, calendars/electronic schedulers, andelectronic information managers) that can receive information from aninformation source via standard page transmissions. When thepaging-capable device receives information, it alerts the user in a wayto get his attention. For example, a paging-capable device can emit anaudible tone (e.g., a beeping sound) or can vibrate against the user'sbody.

The most common form of information is telephone paging codes sentthrough a phone network. An information sender (e.g., another person)typically enters his telephone number on a touch-tone keypad of atelephone. The user's paging-capable device (typically a pager)automatically receives the paging codes when they are sent by the otherperson and alerts the user to the incoming information. In this way, theuser automatically receives information that is individually broadcastto him.

Additionally, the user can receive information that is broadcast to agroup of subscribers. For example, a user can subscribe to a service inan information source (such as a news service on the Internet) whichprovides a particular type of information to a subscriber'spaging-capable device. As with paging codes, the paging-capable devicereceives the information when the information source chooses to send it.When the information is received from the information source, thepaging-capable device alerts the user.

Because the user has no control over when the information source sendsinformation, incoming-information alerts can disturb the user atinconvenient times. Beyond merely annoying a user, frequent alerts candisrupt important meetings and generally lower productivity. Thisproblem is aggravated by the increase in the number of informationsources available (on the Internet, for example) and in the volume ofavailable information from the sources. To avoid this problem, someusers disable their paging-capable devices. While disabling the deviceprevents an alert, it also prevents important information, which may notbe later retrievable, from reaching the user.

In addition to not having control over when information is received bythe paging-capable device, the user typically has no control over whatparticular information is sent. Although a user can select a particularinformation source from which to receive information, he typicallycannot select the particular information the source sends. Without thiscontrol, the user must spend time browsing through the entire set ofinformation broadcast from the source until he finds the information ofinterest. Additionally, with multiple information sources, the volume ofinformation automatically sent to the paging-capable device may exceedthe memory capacity of the device, preventing additional, possibly moreimportant, information from being received.

U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,555,446 and 4,812,843 disclose systems in which usershave limited control over what information is sent and when it is sent.The system of the '446 patent allows a user to transmit an informationrequest to a base station by entering a predetermined code via switcheson a paging device. In that system, the paging device used to send therequest is the same device that receives the requested information. Ifthe user cannot remember or does not know the predetermined code for theinformation he desires to receive, he will not be able to request theinformation.

With the system of the '843 patent, a phone or a computer is used toenter predetermined codes to request information. As with the system ofthe '446 patent, if the user forgets the codes or does not have a listof codes nearby, he will not be able to make his request. In thatsystem, before the user receives the requested information, theinformation is filtered by a third party—a human operator interprets theinformation and determines what information will be accessible to theuser. In the systems of both the '446 and '843 patents, the informationthat the user can request is information that is addressed to and/oraccessible by more than one user.

There is a need, therefore, to provide a system and method forpaging-capable devices that overcome the problems described above.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an illustration of a paging-capable device of a preferredembodiment.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an enhanced paging system of a firstpreferred embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an enhanced paging system of a thirdpreferred embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart of a method of a fourth preferred embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart of an alternate method of the fourth preferredembodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PRESENTLY PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Advantages

The preferred embodiments described below provide the user with controlover when information is sent to his paging-capable device. With suchcontrol, the user can avoid being disturbed by incoming-informationalerts at inconvenient times without having to disable hispaging-capable device.

The preferred embodiments also provide the user with control over whatparticular information is sent to his paging-capable device. Byreceiving only desired information, the user avoids having to spend timebrowsing through an entire set of transmitted information. With thiscontrol, the user avoids exceeding the memory capacity of hispaging-capable device, ensuring that important information sent to thedevice can be received.

First Preferred Embodiment

FIG. 2 illustrates a first preferred embodiment for providinguser-selected information to a paging-capable device. There, an enhancedpaging system 200 is responsive to information sources 210 and aselection device 220 and can transmit information to a paging-capabledevice 230, such as a pager 100 (FIG. 1). As used herein, “responsiveto” can mean directly responsive to or indirectly responsive through oneor more components.

The enhanced paging system 200 comprises a storing means 240, selectingmeans 250, a storage device 260, and a transmitter 270. The storingmeans 240 is coupled to the storage device 260 and is responsive to theinformation sources 210. As used herein, the term “coupled to” can meandirectly coupled to or indirectly coupled through one or morecomponents. The selecting means 250 is coupled to the transmitter 270(which can transmit information to the paging-capable device 230) andthe storage device 260 and is responsive to a selection device 220,which can be different from the paging-capable device 230. Theabove-listed components can be used to provide a user with control overwhat information will be sent to his paging-capable device and when itwill be received, as described below.

Storing means 240 automatically stores in the storage device 260information that is continuously sent to it by the information sources210. The storing means 240 can also index the information and format itfor storage in the storage device 260. Unlike in some of the systems ofthe prior art, the storing means 240 does not filter the content of theinformation before it stores it. An information source can be atelephone network, through which, for example, a person transmitsinformation such as paging codes or voice mail. An information sourcecan also be a computer network (such as the Internet), through whichdata is transmitted. For example, the storing means 240 can receivee-mail and news headlines and summaries from user-subscribed services onthe Internet and store them in the storage device 260. As can be seen bythese examples, the information stored in the storage device 260 can beinformation typically addressed to and/or accessible by only one user(e.g., e-mail, paging codes, and voice mail) or can be informationtypically addressed to and/or accessible by a plurality of users (e.g.,news headlines).

Using the selection device 220, the user selects at least a portion ofthe automatically-stored information to be sent to his paging-capabledevice 230. The selection can be based on content, time the informationwas received, the source of the information, or any other restriction.The selecting means 250 retrieves the selected information from thestorage device 260, formats it for transmission, and sends it to thepaging-capable device 230 via the transmitter 270. With such a system,the user, not the information source, controls what information thepaging-capable device 230 receives and when the information will bereceived, thereby providing a solution to the problems described in theBackground section above.

Second Preferred Embodiment

In a second preferred embodiment, instead of merely acceptinginformation sent to it by the information sources 210, the storing means240 comprises intelligent-agent software that seeks out specificinformation in the information sources 210 and automatically stores itin the storage device 260. For example, if the user generally instructsthe intelligent agent software that he is looking for a particular usedcar, the intelligent-agent software can search Web pages on the Internetfor used-car dealers and private sellers to obtain information such as aseller's location, selling price, and mileage of a car offered for sale.

In addition to being instructed by a user, the intelligent agentsoftware can automatically seek out information based on inferences fromthe user's past conduct. For example, if the user frequently purchasesbooks by a particular author, the intelligent agent software can seekout and store information regarding that author's upcoming releases.Once this information is stored in the storage device 260, the user canselect it for transmission to his paging-capable device 230, asdescribed above. In this way, intelligent agent software presents theuser with a time-saving alternative to browsing the growing number ofinformation sources for information of interest.

Intelligent-agent software can also be used to send critical informationto the user in real time and automatically store non-criticalinformation in the storage device 260. When information is received fromthe information sources 210, the intelligent-agent software in thestoring means 240 and/or selecting means 250 determines whether theinformation is critical. If the information is critical, theintelligent-agent software transmits the information without userrequest to the paging-capable device 230 via the transmitter 270. If theinformation is not critical, the intelligent-agent software stores theinformation in the storage device 260 as before. In this way, the userwill only be disturbed by an alert signal if the information iscritical.

For example, based on a user's instruction, the intelligent agentsoftware knows that the user is expecting an e-mail or a telephone pagefrom a particular person. Using the e-mail address of received messagesor the phone numbers associated with incoming paging codes along with acaller-identification service, the intelligent-agent software candetermine who is sending the information, and hence, whether toimmediately send the information to the user without his request. Theintelligent agent software also can infer from the user's past conductto make a determination of whether information is critical For example,the software can transmit the paging codes of a person whose messagesthe user regularly returns upon receipt of that information, rather thanstore the information for later retrieval.

Additionally, intelligent-agent software can alert the user that moredetailed information is available from the information sources 210 bytransmitting a message to the paging-capable device 230. For example, ifthe intelligent-agent software provides the user with the latest priceof a company's stock, it can alert the user that more information aboutthat company is available. The software can also alert the user of thisinformation when he is using the selection device 220.

Third Preferred Embodiment

FIG. 3 illustrates a third preferred embodiment in which a plurality ofpaging-capable devices 332, 334, 336 are present. In this integratedinformation environment, the user can designate a particularpaging-capable device to receive certain information. For example, ifthe user has a pager and a paging-capable personal data assistant, theuser can choose to send all paging codes received in the last hour tothe pager and can choose to send all received e-mail to the personaldata assistant.

Fourth Preferred Embodiment

FIG. 4 is a flow chart of a method of a fourth preferred embodiment forproviding user-selected information to a paging-capable device. As shownin FIG. 4, the method of the fourth preferred embodiment comprises thesteps of automatically storing information in a storage device (step410), selecting at least a portion of the information automaticallystored in the storage device to be sent to a paging-capable device, theselecting being made from a selection device (step 420), andtransmitting the selected-information to the paging-capable device (step430). The selection device can be any device including a paging-capabledevice, which may or may not be the device receiving the requestedinformation. Intelligent-agent software can be used to seek outinformation, per a user's request or by inferring from the user's pastconduct, for storage in step 410.

FIG. 5 is a flow chart of an alternative method for providinguser-selected information to a paging-capable device. There, informationis received from an information source (step 510). Intelligent-agentsoftware determines whether the information received in step 510 iscritical, such as by using a caller-identification service, the user'spast conduct, or a user's instruction (step 520). If the information iscritical, it is transmitted to the paging-capable device without userrequest (step 530). The other steps of this alternative method are asdescribed above.

Each of the above methods can comprise the additional step oftransmitting a message to the paging-capable device indicating thatadditional information, which is recognized by intelligent-agentsoftware, can be downloaded from an information source. Each method canalso comprise the step of selecting a particular paging-capable deviceto receive the selected information and the step of facilitating userselection of information, for example, by listing the contents of theinformation stored in the storage device 260 or by listing selectionoptions. As described below, an interactive voice response (IVR) systemcan be used to accomplish such facilitating.

For each of the preferred embodiments described above, “informationsources” includes, but is not limited to, phone networks and computernetworks, such as the Internet. “Information” includes, but is notlimited to, information which can be addressed to a group of users(e.g., sports information, weather information business reports, andnews summaries) and, unlike the information in the '446 and '843patents, information typically addressed to and/or accessible by onlyone user (e.g., e-mail, paging codes, and voice mail).

The storage device 260 can be a hard drive in which information isstored in a database, and the selection device 220 can be any devicewhich allows a user to select at least a portion of information storedin the storage device 260. Such selection devices include, but are notlimited to, telephones, computers, and paging-capable devices.

As mentioned above, the selecting means 250 can comprise a system forpresenting the user with selection choices regarding the information hewishes to receive, thereby facilitating user selection of information.For example, an interactive voice response (IVR) interface can be used.The IVR interface presents a series of menus to the user, allowing himto make a selection. In this way, the IVR interface facilitates theselection and retrieval of information since the user need not memorizea predetermined key combination to select a particular category ofinformation, as in the systems of the prior art. For example, the IVRinterface can list all categories of information stored in the storagedevice. Using a series of menus, the user can select to receive, forexample, all stored information, specific categories of information(e.g., all telephone pages and all business articles from a particularWeb site), or a subset of the categories (e.g., all telephone pages fromfamily members and all business articles that were posted on a Web siteafter the close of the market). Additional restrictions (based on, forexample the time the information was received and the source of thereceived information) can be applied as well.

A menu-based system similar to that of the IVR interface can beimplemented on a selecting means 250 comprising a computer-networkinterface wherein the selection device 220 comprises a computer. Themenu-based system would, like the IVR interface, present the user withselection choices regarding the information he wishes to receive. Forexample, a Web page on the Internet can provide a user with a listing ofthe contents of the storage device 260. Using his computer, the user canselect the information listed on the Web page. With both systems, theuser does not have to worry about remembering a predetermined code torequest information, as in the prior art systems. With these preferredembodiments, the user is guided through his selection with a series ofinteractive prompts.

The storing means 240 and selecting means 250 can comprise amicroprocessor implementing a software application or a devotedhardwired component. While the storing means 240 and selecting means 250are shown in FIGS. 2 and 3 as two separate components, it is importantto note that they may be combined in one unit.

Although selecting means 250 and the paging capable devices are shown asseparate components in FIGS. 2 and 3, the selection device 220, asmentioned above, can be the same as or different from the paging-capabledevices selected to receive information.

Any means can be used to couple the information sources 210 to thestoring means 240 as well as to couple the selection device 220 to theselecting means 250. For example, the components can be coupled througha telephone network, a computer network, or radio or infrared links.Means for transmission from the transmitter 270 to the paging-capabledevice 230 is well known in the art.

It is intended that the foregoing detailed description be understood asan illustration of selected forms that the invention can take and not asa definition of the invention. It is only the following claims,including all equivalents, which are intended to define the scope ofthis invention.

1. A method of providing information to a wireless device, the methodcomprising: determining whether a first entity associated with thewireless device is expecting a message from a second entity; receivinginformation from an information source, the information associated witha source indicator identifying the information source; facilitating aselection of the information for transmission to the wireless device bya system other than the wireless device, wherein the system and thewireless device are not in a single housing; analyzing the sourceindicator to determine whether the information source is the secondentity; and when the first entity is expecting a message from the secondentity: transmitting at least a portion of the information to thewireless device over a wireless channel prior to the selection when thesource indicator indicates that the information source is the secondentity; and waiting for the selection of the information beforetransmitting the information to the wireless device over the wirelesschannel when the source indicator indicates that the information sourceis not the second entity.
 2. A method as defined in claim 1, whereindetermining whether the first entity associated with the wireless deviceis expecting the message from the second entity is based on a userinstruction regarding an expectation of the first entity.
 3. A method asdefined in claim 1, wherein determining whether the first entityassociated with the wireless device is expecting the message from thesecond entity comprises analyzing past behavior of the first entity. 4.A method as defined in claim 3, wherein the past behavior comprises thefirst entity regularly returning messages received from the secondentity upon receiving information from the second entity.
 5. A method asdefined in claim 1, further comprising transmitting at least the portionof the information to the wireless device over the wireless channel inreal-time by transmitting the at least the portion of the informationwithout receiving the selection of the information.
 6. A method asdefined in claim 1, wherein analyzing the source indicator to determinewhether the information source is the second entity comprisesdetermining whether the source indicator is an email address associatedwith the second entity.
 7. A method as defined in claim 1, whereinanalyzing the source indicator to determine whether the informationsource is the second entity comprises determining whether the sourceindicator is a telephone number associated with the second entity.
 8. Atangible machine readable medium having instructions stored thereonthat, when executed, cause a machine to at least: determine whether afirst entity associated with a wireless device is expecting a messagefrom a second entity; receive information from an information source,the information associated with a source indicator identifying theinformation source; facilitate a selection of the information fortransmission to the wireless device by a system other than the wirelessdevice, wherein the system and the wireless device are not in a singlehousing; analyze the source indicator to determine whether theinformation source is the second entity; and when the first entity isexpecting a message from the second entity: transmit at least a portionof the information to the wireless device over a wireless channel priorto the selection when the source indicator indicates that theinformation source is the second entity; and wait for the selection ofthe information before transmitting the information to the wirelessdevice over the wireless channel when the source indicator indicatesthat the information source is not the second entity.
 9. A tangiblemachine readable medium as defined in claim 8 having instructions storedthereon that, when executed determine whether the first entityassociated with the wireless device is expecting the message from thesecond entity based on a user instruction regarding an expectation ofthe first entity.
 10. A tangible machine readable medium as defined inclaim 8 having instructions stored thereon that, when executed, cause amachine to determine whether the first entity associated with thewireless device is expecting the message from the second entity byanalyzing past behavior of the first entity.
 11. A tangible machinereadable medium as defined in claim 10, wherein the past behaviorcomprises the first entity regularly returning messages received fromthe second entity upon receiving information from the second entity. 12.A tangible machine readable medium as defined in claim 8 havinginstructions stored thereon that, when executed, cause a machine totransmit at least the portion of the information to the wireless deviceover the wireless channel in real-time by transmitting the at least theportion of the information without receiving the selection of theinformation.
 13. A tangible machine readable medium as defined in claim8 having instructions stored thereon that, when executed, cause amachine to analyze the source indicator to determine whether theinformation source is the second entity by determining whether thesource indicator is an email address associated with the second entity.14. A tangible machine readable medium as defined in claim 8 havinginstructions stored thereon that, when executed, cause a machine toanalyze the source indicator to determine whether the information sourceis the second entity by determining whether the source indicator is atelephone number associated with the second entity.
 15. An informationstorage and communication system, comprising: an intelligent-agentprogram to determine whether a first entity associated with a wirelessdevice is expecting a message from a second entity; a storage device toreceive information from an information source, the informationassociated with a source indicator identifying the information source; aselector to facilitate a selection of the information for transmissionto the wireless device by a system other than the wireless device,wherein the system and the wireless device are not in a single housing;an analyzer to analyze the source indicator to determine whether theinformation source is the second entity; and a transmitter to, when thefirst entity is expecting a message from the second entity, transmit atleast a portion of the information to the wireless device over awireless channel prior to the selection in response to the sourceindicator indicating that the information source is the second entity,and to wait for the selection of the information before transmitting theinformation to the wireless device over the wireless channel in responseto the source indicator indicating that the information source is notthe second entity.
 16. An information storage and communication systemas defined in claim 15, wherein the intelligent-agent program determineswhether the first entity associated with the wireless device isexpecting the message from the second entity based on a user instructionregarding an expectation of the first entity.
 17. An information storageand communication system as defined in claim 15, wherein theintelligent-agent program determines whether the first entity associatedwith the wireless device is expecting the message from the second entityby analyzing past behavior of the first entity.
 18. An informationstorage and communication system as defined in claim 17, wherein thepast behavior comprises the first entity regularly returning messagesreceived from the second entity upon receiving information from thesecond entity.
 19. An information storage and communication system asdefined in claim 15, wherein the transmitter is to transmit at least theportion of the information to the wireless device over the wirelesschannel in real-time by transmitting the at least the portion of theinformation without receiving the selection of the information.
 20. Aninformation storage and communication system as defined in claim 15,wherein the analyzer is to analyze the source indicator to determinewhether the information source is the second entity by determiningwhether the source indicator is an email address or a telephone numberassociated with the second entity.